Many college students rely on the use of their debit cards to make purchases without knowing much about debit card fraud protection. In fact, a debit card may be way riskier than having a credit card or using cash...
Online scams are everywhere and can be hard to avoid. This article covers the basics for spotting phishing attacks via email and social media and what you can do to defend your personal information and stay safe.
In an attempt to help prospective students and upcoming graduates create an authentic online reputation, we’re discussing how your digital identity can make a difference when applying to a school, internship, or future career.
Here are our top tips to help you avoid being broke in college while instilling positive personal financial habits—many of which will benefit you for years to come.
As former President Bill Clinton stated, financial literacy is simply “a very fancy term for saying spend it smart, don't blow it, save what you can and know how the economy works.”...
Stressed by the thought of paying for college? Try this easy checklist to pay for college in 2018-2019.
Saving for a future goal -- here are 10 tips to make saving as a group fun and effective.
Don’t think you have any extra money? Well, think again. We’ll give you 7 ways to save extra money you didn’t even know you had.
The sooner you start stockpiling spare cash, the more your retirement savings could compound by the time you’re ready to stop working.
Americans had less than $1,000 in their banking accounts, according to a 2017 survey. What’s worse, 39% had no savings at all. Here are 5 ways to start your rainy-day fund right now...
Ever dream of saving money for college or your future without even having to think about it? Just choose one or more of these savings kick-starters...
In honor of America Saves Week, here are four ways to jumpstart your short-term savings plan and take some of the sting out of paying for school.
Our expert panel explains how the sticker price of college and your expected family contribution (EFC) can play a part in deciding which school to attend.
Why is it important to consider you future career plans when deciding how much to invest in college? Find out in this expert Q&A video.
Find out how to handle your personal finances in college to become financially independent sooner rather than later.
Saving money in college can be challenging, but it's not impossible. Find out how to save money in college with these tips.
Before spending money on a book you only use once, check out these six ways to find cheap textbooks for your college courses.
A financial education is necessary to help your child become a fiscally responsible adult. Here's how to do it.
Private colleges cost more than public colleges, but does that mean the education is worth more? A recent analysis says probably not.
Money doesn't buy happiness, but it can pay your student loans. Here are the 10 highest- and lowest-earning college majors.
Learn why students need to become more financially literate
And can you trust what the calculators have to say?
How to make some extra cash while you're in college.
College is a great place to learn practical financial skills. It is often the first chance for young adults to make significant financial decisions. College allows real life experience in budgeting money, spending money, and everything else necessary for living on one’s own.
Since higher ed often comes with a hefty price tag, a lot of students start wishing-they-woulda once those educational loan bills arrive in the mail. Here, a few undergrads impart wisdom and warnings about all things financial in college.
Buying textbooks is becoming more and more painful, and prices aren’t going to improve anytime soon. Fortunately, there are some simple ways to dramatically reduce the price you pay. But students don't always know how easy it can be to save on books—or they don't try to find deals until after they've gotten that first credit card bill from the campus bookstore.
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Most college students are struggling to stay financially afloat, use these tips to help save
Every student needs to take a close look at how they manage their finances. All too often students fall into trouble with credit cards or even debit cards.
There are a few things we think you should know before you start college.
It’s tempting to go all-out with your (or your parents') credit card at the campus bookstore. But when you’re hit with a $600 bill for textbooks, that spring break trip you'd been thinking about to suddently starts to look a lot less attainable. We asked four current undergrads and recent alums for advice. Here are the stories of their book-buying woes and their top tips to spare you textbook headaches and save you money:
Income-Based Repayment (IBR) is a new way to make your federal student loan payments more manageable. And if you're a teacher or work in government or at a nonprofit (501(c)(3)) organization, you might qualify for a new type of public service loan forgiveness after 10 years of eligible payments and employment.
New college students have a lot to learn about life on their own. Simultaneously, they are facing many challenges as they adjust to new lifestyles and campus patterns of living and learning. Many college freshmen—indeed, some transfer students as well, will deal with day-to-day costs they never before experienced.
You already know how expensive college textbooks can be. But buck up, because we have some loopholes for you! There are several ways to access course materials other than through your campus bookstore, and these alternatives often don’t require shelling out hundreds of dollars.
Finding Free Stuff on Campus
I graduated from business school in 1983 with what at the time seemed like an inordinate amount of debt. When I started the MBA program I had little savings to pay for my two years of additional education, having spent the time between college and graduate school as a struggling musician in New York City. However, with some cash from a six-month music gig in South America, but mostly on borrowing, I financed my business school years. I was also able to cover most of my living expenses, including the rent on my apartment in the posh Lincoln Center neighborhood. By the time I graduated, I had amassed a staggering $20,000 in mostly government subsidized student loans.
Did you ever think we would long for the good old days when getting our sons or daughters into college was the top preoccupation that kept parents of high school juniors and seniors up at night? With balances in college funds falling by double digits and housing prices continuing their decline, paying for college now may trump college admissions as the primary source of stress for parents of high school students.
With the grim economic outlook and a job market steeped in uncertainty, is graduate school the next phase in your career or are you better off taking your undergrad degree and grabbing the first job offer that comes your way?
As a student, you’ve got enough to worry about. We’re here to make your life easier.
Second semester of freshman year had just started, and I was about to get a lump sum of weekend spending money. At least that’s what I thought as I eagerly waited in the book buyback line in the campus store, fingers red from holding a stack of 6 texts. When my turn came to cash in, I wasn’t so lucky. To avoid being disappointed like I was, consider these four tips.
Congratulations, you've decided to go to college! You've dealt with the applications. You've applied for financial aid. Now, how are you going to pay for everything else? Whether you're just looking for some extra pocket change or a way to afford for your room and board, we've put together the best ideas for students on every kind of budget.
Textbook prices commonly evoke looks of disbelief from incoming college freshmen. $135 for a pre-calculus text and $65 for the supplement? Don’t have $600 to drop on books your first semester? By doing a little research, you can save the equivalent of a year's worth of late-night coffee breaks.
If you've graduated from college, you've probably gotten plenty of offers to "consolidate" your student loans. How can you discern trustworthy lenders from those just trying to make a profit off of you?
When you reach the end of your college career, your path once again opens in front of you. Many low- and middle-income students feel pressured to immediately get a job in order to help support their family and to begin paying off their debt. But that’s not the only post-grad option available. With planning and financial savvy, there are just as many opportunities for students on a budget as for their big-bucks peers:
There are several ways to pay for college, even if you don’t think you can afford tuition.
Depending on your educational history, you may or may not feel that you are as academically prepared for college work as your peers. Some people come into college having been trained by top-notch private or magnet schools and are instantly ready to take on upper-division college courses. Others find that their high school education left them lagging behind their peers. If you fall into the latter category, you may feel that you need a little extra help to catch up.
It’s no big secret that college is expensive. Despite the mounting costs of tuition and living fees, college students don’t want to live the life of the stereotypical starving undergrad. They want to be able to go to concerts and restaurants, own iPods and DVDs, and get new clothes to replace ones that are ripped at the seams—and they want all these things cheaply.
As a student who’s on a budget, you’ve probably given some thought to how you’ll acquire extra spending money. Financial aid and scholarships may cover the major expenses like tuition and housing, but in all likelihood you’ll want some extra cash for gas, movie tickets, dinners, clothes, and personal essentials. So where should you look?
The forms, applications, and documents that are required by financial aid offices can seem endless, and the process at times impossible. And unfortunately, it is something you get to deal with every year during school. When your frustration level rises, though, try to remember that the point of it all is to provide you with an opportunity that you could not otherwise afford.
When you’re young, it’s easy to forget about that shadowy little concept known as credit. Unpaid bills and outstanding credit card statements may seem like something to shrug off, but they can quickly creep up and put a stain on your credit that will haunt you for a long time. So how do you avoid a financial faux pas and build good credit?
Thrifty Shopping: Where to buy what you need
Finances will likely play a role in the individual classes you choose and the major (and potential future plans) around which you organize your efforts and interests. Here are a couple of things to consider when deciding between underwater basket weaving and that math/economics double major.
When planning out your college-on-a-budget school search, a number of factors come into play.
Budget-conscious students face unique challenges when it comes to the admissions game. But this also gives them unique opportunities to stand out from their more moneyed peers, with tales of hard work and obstacles overcome that pique admission officers’ interest. You need to learn how to spin your skills into what colleges are looking for.
If you weren’t lucky enough to get a huge scholarship or to have been born the child of an oil tycoon, there’s a good chance that you’ll be paying for your education, at least partially, with financial aid.
You’ve got the laundry part down, and you’ve mastered the art of getting a pizza to your dorm room at 1 a.m. But that’s not all it’s going to take to live on your own—one of the most critical parts of the college transition is figuring out how to manage your own money.
Most students and parents are under the impression that you need to either be an Olympic-caliber athlete or have perfect test scores and grades to qualify for some free money, but that’s not necessarily the case. With proper planning, research, and ambition, many students can qualify for and receive a scholarship that is right for them.
By New Year’s Day, the dust has settled on the mad rush of test taking, essay proofing, and recommendation-letter gathering necessary to the college application process. Yet the savviest students are still at work, attending info sessions, collecting financial documents, and meeting with financial aid counselors to qualify for aid that could give them thousands of dollars to help pay for college.
Let’s be honest with ourselves for a minute: college is a rip-off. There, I said it. It seems completely uncalled for, cruel even, for colleges to charge students upwards of $40K a year for the privilege of attending their fine institutions of higher learning.
So, you and your family have just paid your gazillion-dollar tuition. All done, right? Think you can rest easy? Well, in the words of former Harvard President Johnny Moneybags, “You’re just getting started, buddy!”
College and SAT application fees can quickly add up to hundreds of dollars. What most high school seniors don’t know is that there’s a way to avoid these costs.
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